Sometimes, recording artists get it in their heads that audiences want to hear new music, obscure music … anything but their greatest hits.

And while we’ll give ‘em this — that singing the same songs concert after concert can be tedious for the vocalist and his or her band — fans are indeed disappointed when the set list doesn’t include at least some of the tunes that made the artist famous.

Nine-time Grammy winner Sheryl Crow gave the crowd more than its money’s worth when she headlined Lulu’s Barkin’ BBQ, the annual hoedown that Fred and Jana Bartlit host as a fundraiser for the Dumb Friends League.

Her hour-long show included nearly all of her hits, including “Soak Up the Sun,” “The First Cut Is The Deepest,” “All I Wanna Do” and “If It Makes You Happy.”

She further endeared herself by pointing out that a couple of the boys in her band were wearing shirts they’d purchased at the Larimer Square boutique, Cry Baby Ranch.

A 1993 inductee to the Country Music Hall of Fame, Nelson wrote his first song at the tender age of 7 and has since gone on to have 25 singles hit No. 1 on the country music charts. He has acted in 30 films, co-authored several books and was a 1998 recipient of the Kennedy Center Honors. In 1985, he began Farm Aid with Neil Young and John Mellencamp.

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Joe Cocker, left, with Fred and Jana Bartlit and their dog, Lulu.

Please tell me I’m not the only one who thought it was pretty cool that an entertainer with the last name of Cocker was the headliner for the 10th anniversary Lulu’s Barkin’ BBQ. See, it’s a benefit for the Denver Dumb Friends League, and every now and then there’s a cocker spaniel up for adoption there, and …

OK, maybe that’s too much of a stretch. But in any event, veteran rocker Joe Cocker put on quite a show for the 550 who gathered at Fred and Jana Bartlit’s Castle Pines home for this annual chuckwagon barbecue, auction and show that this year raised a record $600,000 for the DDFL’s Buddy Center, a shelter in Douglas County that served 4,500 animals in 2010 alone.

Fred Bartlit, considered one of the nation’s leading trial lawyers, was recently appointed chief counsel to the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico. He also was trial counsel on the 1989 investigation into the cause of the Piper Alpha North Sea Oil Platform disaster, in which 160 people died. Those findings led to widepread changes in industrial drilling practices in the North Sea.

In addition to hosting Lulu’s Barkin’ BBQ, the Bartlits have also funded several other Dumb Friends League services, including a mobile spay and neuter unit, the Lulu Mobile, that serves pets in low-income neighborhoods. Interestingly, Philip Beck, the “Beck” in the Bartlit Beck Herman Palenchar & Scott law firm, was so inspired by the Lulu Mobile that he and his family funded a similar unit, the Gus Mobile, in Chicago, where the firm also has offices. The Gus Mobile, part of the PAWS Chicago shelter, serves pet owners in the Windy City’s poorest neighborhoods.

In addition to the two-legged guests, several furry, four-legged creatures also made the scene, arriving in the DDFL’s mobile adoption unit. Twelve of them, including Mama, a pug; Issa, an 8-year-old cattle dog; and three Siamese kittens, were adopted.

“Jana and Fred are not only extraordinary hosts, they have hearts of gold,” observes Bob Rohde, the DDFL’s president and chief executive officer. “We are humbled by their generosity and grateful for their having made the event so memorable.”

Jana Bartlit is vice chair and a lifetime member of the DDFL board.

After enjoying cocktails and conversation, and a silent auction, the dinner bell rang and everyone filed into the dinner tent for a buffet featuring tenderloin and fried chicken from chef Tom Perini of Texas. Perini’s credits include six invitations to cook at the James Beard House in New York and catering for former President George W. Bush.

Jim Odle and John Clatworthy of Odle & Cumberlin Auctioneers in Bush, CO, kept the live auction lively, scoring such amazing bids as $25,000 for the purchase of animal care supplies at the Buddy Center; $17,000 for the honor of having the high bidder’s pet appear on the cover of the DDFL’s 2012 calendar and $12,000 for another pet to be the calendar’s centerfold.

Denver Art Museum president Cathey Finlon and her husband, Dick; Roger Hutson and Leslie McKay; Jack and Darci Overstreet; Jim Palenchar and Liz Lynner; Barbara Schmitt; and Don Scott were among the Club Lulu VIP-level guests on hand for the festivities; Club Lulu Premiere-level attendees included Kathi Brock; Shelley Magness and Eric Head; Dr. Peter Sendroy; Jim and Karen Possehl; and the Lawrence Covells.

Joe Cocker’s wife, Pam, purchased a patron table and her guests included BJ Dyer and Guenther Vogt. The owners of Bouquets have been friends with the Cockers for many years, meeting when BJ’s cousin, Sue Green, became Pam Cocker’s personal assistant.

Doug Stewart shows the catalog that Lisa Gaige bookmarked with her wish list for Dine & D'Art. (Steve Peterson, Special to The Denver Post)

Fundraisers with a black-tie and tennis shoes dress code aren’t exactly a dime a dozen; we can think of maybe four that happen here every year. They’re loads of fun, but when it comes to being unique, none of them hold a candle to the ArtReach-sponsored Dine & D’Art.

Dine & D’Art guests don’t wear sneakers to be cool. They need ‘em to gain traction for the D’Art portion of the evening — the mad scramble to get one’s hands on a coveted painting, photograph, sculpture, jewel or piece of furniture created for the occasion by such artists as Darrell Anderson, Zoe Tessier, Agnes Sanchez, Sharon Feder, Lucia De Giovanni, Tadd Moskal, John Atencio, Laurie Maves, John Fielder and Ivadell Marie. Each item is worth at least $400.

Headliner Chris Isaak, right, donated an autographed guitar that was purchased in the live auction by Brandis and Steve Pelletier. Photo by Steve Peterson, Special to The Denver Post
Everybody loves Lulu, or so it would seem.
For the past eight years, the 9-year-old Brussells griffon has asked her humans, Fred and Jana Bartlit, to do something nice for the animals who might not live such a charmed life as she does. So the Bartlits toss Lulu’s Barkin’ BBQ, a big shindig that brings 500 people to their Castle Pines home for a Texas-style barbecue prepared by legendary chef Tom Perini of Buffalo Gap, Texas, and headline entertainment, this year by Grammy-nominated recording artist Chris Isaak. Previous years have featured Patti LaBelle, Cyndi Lauper and Dwight Yoakum.
The barbecue is a benefit for the Denver Dumb Friends League, of which Jana Bartlit is a lifetime trustee. As of Monday, the 2009 edition had raised $397,000 — with more yet to be counted. The Bartlits take care of every expense.
It’s not just for the love of their pooch that they make such a generous gesture. Fred, an attorney with Bartlit Beck Herman Palenchar & Scott, and Jana firmly believe that humans that abuse animals often go on to do evil things to people. “Studies prove that — and jails are filled with — people who’ve transgressed against animals and have gone on to maim or kill or abuse fellow human beings. More often than not the victims are little girls and boys,” he said. “So this barbecue is about much more than our love for furry little creatures.”
Folks arrive at the Bartlit party prepared to have fun, and that they do.
Even the live auction — a low point for so many other events, particularly now that people are keeping a careful eye on discretionary spending — is fun and, well, lively.
Led by John Clatworthy and Jim Odle, this year’s bidding included Pamela Hollister’s record-breaking $17,500 for the chance to have one of her pets pictured on the cover of the DDFL’s 2010 calendar. Hollister is the wife of Great-West Life president/ceo Mitchell Graye.Brandis Becky Pelletier and her husband, Steve, were high bidders ($4,500) on a black acoustic guitar that Chris Isaak, whose Maltese, Rodney, often tours with him, donated and personally inscribed for them.
But it wasn’t just luxury items that attracted bidder attention. Guests also paid to purchase medical equipment for the DDFL’s Buddy Center shelter in Douglas County; to subsidize senior citizen pet adoptions at the Buddy Center; and to buy tags, collars and leashes, microchip services and vaccines.Bob Rohde, who has been president of the Dumb Friends League since 1977, helped the hosts welcome such VIP guests as Cathy Bissell, founder of lostpets.com; Dr. Scott Campbell, chairman/ceo of Banfield Pet Hospitals; Neil Thompson, CEO of Hill’s Pet Nutrition; and Dr. Jed Rogers, president of the Colorado Veterinary Medical Association.
Bissell flew in from her home in Michigan to join her Denver friends Dana and Chris Rebhun, and Stacey Renker, whose husband, Greg, is a founding principal of Guthy-Renker Corp., the world’s largest direct response television company. They live in Rancho Mirage, Calif.
Patron-level supporters included Kathi Brock and Dr. Pete Sendroy; June Harper; Cathey and Dick Finlon; Howard and Susan Noble; Barbara Schmitt; Randy and Karen Woods; Cynthia and Tim Larkin; and Dick and Marcia Robinson.
We also spotted U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman and his wife, Cynthia; Dianne Vanderlip; Judy Fahrenkrog; Hanne Lichtenfels; Larry King; Jan and Miles Cortez; Rollie Jordan and Michael Dunahay; Bill and Yvonne McCallum; John and Martha Gart; Dr. Jil Hennessey; Jim and Cathy Marquis; Murphy and Carol Huston; and Mark and Pat “Gabby Gourmet” Miller.